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Suffolk city, Virginia: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Suffolk city is 161.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 460 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (211), Rail grade crossing (79), Air permit holder (minor source) (59). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 30 in a million, driven mainly by formaldehyde.

Rates are age-adjusted per 100,000 people. A cancer signal is marked significant when the lower bound of its 95 percent confidence interval is above the U.S. rate. Facility counts use active federal records located inside the county boundary. Approximate county center: 36.7328, -76.6215.

How this county ranks in Virginia

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Cancer deaths and new cases versus the United States

Source: NCI and CDC State Cancer Profiles, both sexes, all ages. Sorted by the ratio of the county rate to the U.S. rate.

Cancer rates for Suffolk city compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	6.6	4.6	1.43xSignificant	4.7 to 9.1	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	24.3	17.9	1.36xSignificant	20.3 to 28.9	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.9	4.4	1.34x	4 to 8.5	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	4.9	3.7	1.32x	3.3 to 7	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	31.2	23.8	1.31xSignificant	26.7 to 36.3	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	3.5	2.7	1.3x	2.1 to 5.4	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.3	4.1	1.29x	3.5 to 7.7	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	7	5.7	1.23x	4.9 to 9.7	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	8.1	6.6	1.23x	5.9 to 10.8	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	7.8	6.6	1.18x	5.7 to 10.5	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	161.4	143.2	1.13xSignificant	151 to 172.4	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	20.5	18.7	1.1x	16.8 to 24.8	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.4	8.7	1.08x	7.1 to 12.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	12.1	11.3	1.07x	9.4 to 15.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	31.4	30.2	1.04x	26.9 to 36.4	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	464.4	453.4	1.02x	446.4 to 482.8	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	13.1	13	1.01x	10 to 16.8	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.4	3.4	1x	2.1 to 5.3	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	14.5	14.5	1x	11.3 to 18.3	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	51.8	51.8	1x	46 to 58.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	13	13.9	0.94x	10.2 to 16.3	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	16	18.5	0.86x	12.8 to 19.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4	4.8	0.83x	2.5 to 6.1	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	4.7	6.2	0.76x	3 to 7	2019-2023

Mortality measures versus the U.S. county median

Source: County Health Rankings, built from CDC National Vital Statistics System death records. The comparison value is the median of all U.S. counties.

Mortality measures for Suffolk city
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,290.4	9,842.6	-6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.4	75.3	+0%	years
Child mortality	64.2	59.8	+7%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	6.6	6.2	+6%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	69.1	96.9	-29%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	29.8	28.6	+4%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 30 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde17.92 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.97 per million
Acetaldehyde1.71 per million
Benzene1.03 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 245 days: 237 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 38, peak 101.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

460 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit211
Rail grade crossing79
Air permit holder (minor source)59
Gas station (mapped facility)41
Small hazardous waste generator20
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)13
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)6
Hazardous waste transporter5
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)4
TRI reporting facility3
Major air pollution source2
EPA air quality monitor2
Public airport2
Large hazardous waste generator2
Heliport2
Superfund (NPL) site2
Commercial airport1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Biomass power plant1
Solar power plant1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)1

Highest-severity records

The 25 records with the highest Envyrofax severity in the county, with the agency identifier to cite in a records request.

Saunders Supply Co., Chuckatuck
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 36.9. NPL Site.
EPA site ID VAD003117389 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Former Nansemond Ordnance Depot, Suffolk
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 70.7. NPL Site.
EPA site ID VAD123933426 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Solenis Llc, Suffolk
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Acrylonitrile, Ammonia, Acrylamide and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 46,403 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 23434LLDCL2301W (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.1
Solenis Llc - Suffolk, Suffolk
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020677999 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Cameron Chemical Inc., Suffolk
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Copper And Copper Compounds, Copper compounds and 1 more. 7,575 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2343WCMRNC83LDD (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6
Airgas Specialty Products Inc. Suffolk Va, Suffolk
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 1,681 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2343WRGSSP15DIL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.5
Cameron Chemical Inc, Suffolk
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001896324 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Spsa Regional Landfill, Suffolk
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110034172133 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Wilroy Center, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070598708 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Spsa Regional Landfill, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110034172133 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Oldcastle Lawn And Garden Inc., Suffolk
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071732288 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Pow Gen (Suffolk) & Suff Energy Partners, Suffolk
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002404461 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Spsa Regional Landfill, Suffolk
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110034172133 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Portsmouth City - Lake Kilby Water Treatment Fac, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110014364053 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Solenis Llc - Suffolk, Suffolk
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020677999 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Hrsd - Nansemond Wastewater Treatment Plant, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041174118 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Amazon.Com Services Llc - Orf3, Suffolk
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071073898 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Oldcastle Lawn & Garden Inc., Suffolk
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead compounds, Trifluralin, Lead And Lead Compounds.
TRI facility ID 2343WLDCST31KEN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Nansemond Pre-Cast Concrete Company Inc, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010912833 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Portsmouth City - Lake Kilby Water Treatment Fac, Suffolk
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110014364053 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
John C Holland Enterprises Landfill, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110028260030 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Mas Suffolk Rng, Llc, Suffolk
Biomass power plant.
Record ID 54781 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 2.5
Hosier Daddy Metals, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000620276 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Nansemond Pre-Cast Concrete Company Inc, Suffolk
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110010912833 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Suffolk Recycling, Suffolk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $10,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070874307 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

No correctional facility with an EPA record is located in this county.

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Suffolk city

Virginia state cancer registry
Cancer incidence counts by census tract or ZIP code, by cancer type and year (de-identified). Any cancer cluster inquiries or investigations in Suffolk city, and their findings.
Virginia vital statistics office
Death certificate counts by cause of death and residence tract or ZIP code, and the years behind the mortality measures above.
Virginia health department, environmental epidemiology
Health consultations or assessments by ATSDR or the state health department covering the county, and any exposure investigations.
Virginia environmental agency and the U.S. EPA regional office
Compliance history, inspection reports, notices of violation, penalties and enforcement actions for each facility above, cited by EPA FRS registry ID.
Virginia drinking water program
Violation notices, sampling results and sanitary surveys for the public water systems serving the county, including any system serving a correctional facility.
Department of corrections or county sheriff
Water testing, grievances and environmental health inspections for the correctional facilities listed above.

Each Envyrofax address report includes a printable records request worksheet with the custodian and the exact request wording per finding.

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